1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an articulated apparatus for handling drilling equipment, tools and other apparatus. More particularly, the present invention relates to an articulated apparatus having articulated sets of arms which move the drilling tool between a stowed position and a deployed position. More specifically, the present invention relates to an articulated handling apparatus which allows for horizontally and vertically adjustable movement of the drilling tool.                2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98        
In the oil and gas industry, various tools are required to be installed in a location adjacent to the well bore. Generally, the drill string is made up of a drill pipe and a bottom hole assembly. During the installation of such a drill string, various components must be threaded together in a quick and efficient manner. In other circumstances, tools must be supplied in a location over well center or over the mouse hole. In most operations, it is imperative that the various components of the drilling operation be supplied in a quick, efficient and safe manner.
The handling of a drilling string can be a routine and tedious job performed on almost a daily basis. The apparatus that is normally called a power tong or a roughneck is often utilized to make up or break the threaded tool joint connection of a drilling string. In normal operation, it is necessary to move the power tong or the roughneck between various locations including the well center, the mouse hole and a storage position. It is often difficult to move such apparatus on the drilling rig due to the heavy weight of such a device. Additionally, there is very limited space around the well center and, as such, efficient handling is required in limited space availability. Additionally, and furthermore, the need to move such heavy equipment in such a limited area can often cause accidents that could damage drilling apparatus and injure the rig crew. In the past, one method that is used carry the power tong or roughneck from the well enter backward and forward is mounting the unit on a trolley that rides on a pair of tracks mounted on the drill floor. The problem with this configuration is that the floor-mounted tracks often create tripping hazards for the rig crew. It becomes difficult and unusually complex when multiple locations are required to move the units. Such floor-mounted tracks often occupy too much space on the rig.
Another type of device that is used is a telescopic arm driven by a hydraulic cylinder. This type of carrying device requires extra space and is costly to manufacture. These types of carrying devices are also limited with respect to weight-carrying requirements and size.
Another type of device is used to accomplish the movement of various drilling apparatus is to swing the tong or roughneck by using a C-shaped mechanism where the unit is pivotally hanging on the top the structure. A problem with this type of device is that is difficult to position the unit because the weight of unit keeps the vertical position. Additionally, it is limited as having a relative short reach-out capability.
In the past, various U.S. patents have issued relating to such handling apparatus. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,234,150, issued on Nov. 18, 1980 to Mee et al., describes a mechanical arm assembly in which the distal end is movable in a straight line relative to the proximal end thereof. The articulated arm includes a first arm which incorporates a first parallelogram linkage and a second arm which includes a second parallelogram linkage. These adjacent ends of the parallelogram linkages are drivingly connected to one another whereby rotation of the first arm about the first end support alters the geometry of the first parallelogram linkage which, in turn, effects a corresponding alteration in the geometry of the second parallelogram linkage. This causes the movement of the distal end of the second arm in a straight line relative to the proximal end of the first arm.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,274,778, issued on Jun. 23, 1981 to Putnam et al., shows a mechanized stand handling apparatus for drilling rigs. This apparatus is suitable for the handling of drill collars and pipe stands. This apparatus is comprised of hydraulically-mechanized derrickman and associated fingerboard lock bars adapted for the remote control in the placement of the stands in a derrick. This allows the device to be in alignment with the rotary table and fully placed within the racking fingers. The stand handling mechanism has articulated arms extensible by an actuator apparatus housed entirely within the confines thereof.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,667,026, issued on Sep. 16, 1997 to Lorenz et al., describes a positioning apparatus for a power tong. This positioning apparatus moves a power tong between an operative position and an inoperative position. The positioning apparatus has a first arm and a second arm. One end of the first arm is pivotally connected to one end of the second arm while the other end of both the first arm and the second arm are pivotally mounted on a beam attached to the drilling tower. Both arms can be extended and retracted in unison to move the power tong towards and away from its operative position circumjacent a pipe string.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,318,214, issued on Nov. 20, 2001 to A. Buck, teaches a power tong positioning apparatus that is positionable on the surface of drilling rig deck and attachable to at least one power tong. The power tong support is adapted to position at least one power tong so that it may engage a tubular member. The power tong positioning apparatus includes a frame, a base movably positioned on the frame, and a power tong support attached to the base and movably attachable to at least one power tong.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,178,612 issued on Feb. 20, 2007, U.S. Pat. No. 7,249,639 issued on Jul. 31, 2007, and U.S. Pat. No. 7,455,128 issued on Nov. 25, 2008, each teach an automated arm for positioning of drilling tools, such as an iron roughneck. The apparatus described in these patents serves to move an iron roughneck into position to allow making-up or breaking-out of threaded joints of a drill string. The apparatus may also be used to move other drilling equipment into position on the centerline of the well or at mouse holes. A self-balanced, dual-synchronized parallelogram arm is utilized to accomplish the movement of the devices. Hydraulic or pneumatic cylinders are used for extension and retraction of the arm rather than to support the tool. The arm may hold the tool in any position without cylinder assistance. The linkage in the synchronized parallelogram may be accomplished by gears, links, slots or rollers.
A problem associated with U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,178,612, 7,249,639 and 7,455,128 is that they have an excessive number of linkages and rotational members as main load bearing elements. These linkage and rotational members tend to wear out and fail since they take a major cantilever load during the movement. Since the synchronized linkage is a main load path of the structure of the device, the synchronized link can easily wear and break. In view of the substantial structure of the other components, the synchronized link is relatively small and fragile. These patents describe an apparatus that also requires a column and guide to absorb the entire cantilever load and overturn moment from the drilling apparatus. The structure of the apparatus described in these patents is also costly to fabricate and difficult to service. Generally, each of the components of the prior art have too many moving elements, is difficult to control, and is prone to deterioration and breakage. Additionally, since the vertical column is located on the drilling floor and since the moving components are located in a position where workman is carrying out their tasks, these devices tend to present a safety hazard at the drilling rig. Also, in these patents, the entire extended arms go up and down while carrying the drilling tool. The guide moves up and down along the column directly under the main rig structure in a very tight space. Since this space has many critical electrical and fluid service lines therein, the prior art can often cause serious problems resulting from contacts and collisions. It can also potentially damage the rig structure.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an articulated handling apparatus that effectively allows for the movement of the drilling apparatus from a stowed position to a deployed position.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an articulated handling apparatus which places vertical movement adjacent to the well center or mouse hole in an open area away from the rig structure and service lines.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an articulated handling apparatus that avoids damage to rig structure and equipment.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an articulated handling apparatus that better distributes cantilever load and overturn moment by only moving the drilling tool.
It is still a further object of the present invention to provide an articulated handling apparatus that is easy to service and to fabricate.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide an articulated handling apparatus which minimizes wear-and-tear and failure rates by using hydraulic or pneumatic actuators as the main load bearing elements.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an articulated handling apparatus that minimizes a risk of damage to drilling rig structure.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from a reading of the attached specification and appended claims.